Air conditioning device

ABSTRACT

An air conditioning device is provided. The air conditioning device includes a power supplier, a compressor driver, a fan driver, a temperature sensor, a vibration sensor, and an operation processing controller. The power supplier has an input end receiving an input power source and generates a first operating power source and a second operating power source according to the input power source. The compressor driver operates according to the first operating power source to generate a first drive signal to drive a compressor. The fan driver operates according to the first operating power source to generate a second drive signal to drive a fan. The vibration sensor detects vibration information of the air conditioning device. The operation processing controller operates according to the second operating power source and controls the power supplier according to the vibration information to determine whether to cut off supply of the first operating power source to ensure safe operation of the air conditioning device.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

This application claims the priority benefit of U.S. provisionalapplication Ser. No. 62/818,111, filed on Mar. 14, 2019. The entirety ofthe above-mentioned patent application is hereby incorporated byreference herein and made a part of this specification.

BACKGROUND Technical Field

The disclosure relates to an air conditioning device, and in particular,to a protection mechanism of an air conditioning device.

Description of Related Art

In today's society, air conditioning devices have become commonly useddevices. The air conditioning devices can be configured to regulate thetemperature, humidity and airflow distribution of air. Air in theenvironment may thereby be maintained in a comfortable state. Based onthe characteristic that the air conditioning devices need to work for along time, electrical and mechanical equipment of the air conditioningdevices may fail due to environmental factors and/or deterioration ofcomponents. Therefore, it is a very important subject to monitor the airconditioning devices in real time and to maintain a certain degree ofappropriateness of the air conditioning devices.

SUMMARY

The disclosure is directed to provide a protection mechanism withdifferent reaction rates for an air conditioning device so as toeffectively maintain a rate of appropriateness of the air conditioningdevice.

According to the embodiments of the disclosure, an air conditioningdevice is configured to control an air conditioner. The air conditioningdevice includes a power supplier, a compressor driver, a fan driver, avibration sensor, a temperature sensor, a current sensor, a voltagesensor, and an operation processing controller. The power supplier hasan input end receiving an input power source and generates a firstoperating power source and a second operating power source according tothe input power source. The compressor driver operates according to thefirst operating power source to generate a first drive signal to drive acompressor. The fan driver operates according to the first operatingpower source to generate a second drive signal to drive a fan. Thevibration sensor detects vibration information of the air conditioner.The temperature sensor detects a plurality of pieces of temperatureinformation of the air conditioner. The current sensor detects currentinformation of the compressor and the fan. The voltage sensor detectsvoltage information in the air conditioning device. The operationprocessing controller is coupled to the power supplier, the compressordriver, the fan driver, the temperature sensor, the current sensor, thevoltage sensor, and the vibration sensor, operates according to thesecond operating power source, and controls the power supplier accordingto the vibration information, the temperature information, the currentinformation, and the voltage information to determine whether to cut offsupply of the first operating power source or stop operation of thecompressor and the fan.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The accompanying drawings are included to provide a furtherunderstanding of the disclosure, and are incorporated in and constitutea part of this specification. The accompanying drawings illustrateembodiments of the disclosure and, together with the description, serveto explain the principles of the disclosure.

FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of an air conditioning device according toan embodiment of the disclosure.

FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram of an air conditioning device according toanother embodiment of the disclosure.

FIG. 3 is a start timing sequence diagram of multiple protection actionsof the air conditioning device according to the embodiments of thedisclosure.

DESCRIPTION OF THE EMBODIMENTS

Exemplary embodiments of the disclosure are described in detail, andexamples of the exemplary embodiments are shown in the accompanyingdrawings. Whenever possible, the same component symbols are used in thedrawings and descriptions to indicate the same or similar parts.

Please refer to FIG. 1, FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of an airconditioning device according to an embodiment of the disclosure. An airconditioning device 100 includes a power supplier 110, a compressordriver 120, a fan driver 130, a vibration sensor 150, and an operationprocessing controller 140. The power supplier 110 has an input endreceiving an input power source VIN. The power supplier 110 generates afirst operating power source V1 and a second operating power source V2according to the input power source VIN. The compressor driver 120 andthe fan driver 130 are coupled to the power supplier 110 to receive thefirst operating power source V1 and operates according to the firstoperating power source V1. Based on the first operating power source V1,the compressor driver 120 is configured to generate a drive signal DRV1to drive a compressor 121, and the fan driver 130 is configured togenerate a drive signal DRV2 to drive a fan 131.

The vibration sensor 150 is disposed on the air conditioning device 100.The vibration sensor 150 detects vibration information IF of the airconditioning device 100. The operation processing controller 140 iscoupled to the power supplier 110 and the vibration sensor 150. Theoperation processing controller 140 receives the second operating powersource V2 and operates according to the second operating power sourceV2. Based on the second operating power source V2, the operationprocessing controller 140 receives the vibration information IF andcontrols the power supplier 110 according to the vibration informationIF to determine whether to cut off the supply of the first operatingpower source V1 of the power supplier 110. In the present embodiment,the level of the first operating power source V1 is greater than thelevel of the second operating power source V2.

Specifically, the vibration sensor 150 is configured to sense avibration state that occurs when the air conditioning device 100operates. The vibration information IF generated by the vibration sensor150 can indicate the magnitude of position offset of the airconditioning device 100 caused by vibration. In addition, the operationprocessing controller 140 can determine whether an absolute value of apeak value of the position offset of the air conditioning device 100 isgreater than a pre-determined threshold value according to the vibrationinformation IF, and the operation processing controller 140 can informthe power supplier 110 that the supply of the first operating powersource V1 needs to be cut off at this time through a generated controlcommand CMD when the absolute value of the position offset of the airconditioning device 100 is greater than the above-mentioned thresholdvalue. On the contrary, if the absolute value of the peak value of theposition offset of the air conditioning device 100 is not greater thanthe above-mentioned threshold value, the power supplier 110 may continueto supply the first operating power source V1.

Incidentally, in the present embodiment, the operation processingcontroller 140 may perform interpretation of the vibration informationIF by executing software and generates the corresponding control commandCMD through a software execution result. That is, in the presentembodiment, when the air conditioning device 100 vibrates excessively,the operation processing controller 140 may start a protection action inseveral mini-seconds (ms) through the software and cut off the supply ofthe first operating power source V1 of the power supplier 110 via thecontrol command CMD. Alternatively, in other embodiments, the operationprocessing controller 140 may not cut off the supply of the firstoperating power source V1 of the power supplier 110 and directly send acommand to stop the operation of the fan 131 and the compressor 121.

The air conditioning device 100 of the embodiment of the disclosurefurther includes a voltage sensor 170, a temperature sensor 180, and acurrent sensor 160. The voltage sensor 170, the temperature sensor 180,and the current sensor 160 are coupled to the operation processingcontroller 140. The voltage sensor 170, the temperature sensor 180, andthe current sensor 160 provide detected voltage information, temperatureinformation, and current information to the operation processingcontroller 140 respectively as a basis for how the operation processingcontroller 140 starts a protection mechanism. Herein, the voltage sensor170 and the current sensor 160 can detect voltage and current states ofone or more electronic components in an air conditioner and generatevoltage information and current information by detecting whether thevoltage and current states are abnormal or not. The temperature sensor180 may be disposed at one or more locations inside the air conditionerand generates temperature information by detecting a temperature stateof each part when the air conditioner works.

Referring to FIG. 2 next, FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram of an airconditioning device according to another embodiment of the disclosure.An air conditioning device 200 includes a power supplier 210, acompressor driver 220, a fan driver 230, a vibration sensor 250, anoperation processing controller 240, a voltage sensor 260, and a fuseF2. In the present embodiment, the power supplier 210 includes an inputend 211, a fuse F1, a surge current protector 212, voltage converters213 and 214, a switch SW1, a start inrush current protector 215, and apower factor corrector 216. The input end 211 is configured to receivean input power source VIN. The fuse Fl is coupled in series between theinput end 211 and the surge current protector 212. The surge currentprotector 212 is configured to reduce a surge current generated on theinput power source VIN. The voltage converter 214 receives the inputpower source VIN via the surge current protector 212 and performs avoltage conversion action for the input power source VIN to generate asecond operating power source V2. In the present embodiment, the voltageconverter 214 may be an AC to DC voltage converter.

The switch SW1 is coupled onto a path in which the power supplier 210outputs a first operating power source V1. The switch SW1 may be turnedon or off in accordance with a control command CMD transmitted by theoperation processing controller 240. The start inrush current protector215 is connected to two ends of the switch SW1 in a cross-over mode andconfigured to reduce an inrush current generated by the air conditioningdevice 200 in the starting process. The voltage converter 213 is coupledto an output end of the start inrush current protector 215 and performsa voltage conversion action for the input power source VIN to generatethe first operating power source V1 when the switch SW1 is turned on.Herein, the level of the first operating power source V1 is greater thanthe level of the second operating power source V2.

In addition, the power factor corrector 216 is coupled to an output endproviding the first operating power source V1 so as to perform a powerfactor correction action of the first operating power source V1.

In another aspect, the power supplier 210 provides the first operatingpower source V1 to the compressor driver 220 and the fan driver 230. Thecompressor driver 220 and the fan driver 230 generate drive signals DRV1and DRV2 respectively based on the first operating power source V1 andmake the drive signals DRV1 and DRV2 drive a compressor 221 and a fan231 respectively. In the present embodiment, the fuse F2 is disposed inthe power supplier 210 and the fan driver 230.

It is worth mentioning that in the present embodiment, when a peakcurrent provided by the drive signal DRV1 is excessively high, thecompressor 221 may feed back a peak current protection signal PC1 to thecompressor driver 220 and make the compressor driver 220 cut off thesupply of the drive signal DRV1. Similarly, when a peak current providedby the drive signal DRV2 is excessively high, the fan 231 may feed backa peak current protection signal PC2 to the fan driver 230 and make thefan driver 230 cut off the supply of the drive signal DRV2.

Here, the protection actions performed by the compressor driver 220 andthe fan driver 230 are performed by means of hardware circuits.Accordingly, the protection actions performed by the compressor driver220 and the fan driver 230 may be accomplished in several micro-seconds(us).

In another aspect, the fuse F1 and the fuse F2 may be fused respectivelywhen an overcurrent phenomenon occurs in the input power source VIN andthe first operating power source V1. When the overcurrent phenomenonoccurs in the input power source VIN, the fuse F1 may be fused to stopthe receiving of the input power source VIN. When the overcurrentphenomenon occurs in the first operating voltage V1, the fuse F2 may befused to prevent the fan driver 230 from receiving the first operatingpower source V1, and the purpose of circuit protection is achieved.Here, the fusing action of the fuse F1 and the fuse F2 may be completedin several seconds, which is another form of hardware protection action.

In the present embodiment, the compressor driver 220 and the fan driver230 are coupled to the operation processing controller 240. Thecompressor driver 220 and the fan driver 230 transmit abnormalityinformation ABI1 and ABI2 to the operation processing controller 240respectively. The abnormality information ABI1 includes abnormalityinformation of temperature information of the compressor driver 220 andcurrent information of the compressor driver 220. The abnormalityinformation ABI2 includes abnormality information of temperatureinformation of the fan driver 230 and current information of the fandriver 230.

The operation processing controller 240 may generate a control commandCMD based on the abnormality information ABI1 and ABI2 by executingsoftware. When an abnormality occurs in at least one of the compressordriver 220, the fan driver 230, the compressor 221, and the fan 231, theswitch SW1 is turned off by the control command CMD. By turning off theswitch SW1, the supply of the first operating power source V1 may bestopped, and the appropriateness state of hardware components ismaintained.

In another aspect, the operation processing controller 240 mayadditionally receive temperature information IFO such as a condensertemperature IF21, an ambient temperature IF22, a compressor input endtemperature IF23, and a compressor output end temperature IF24. Theoperation processing controller 240 also receives vibration informationIF1 of the air conditioning device 200 through the vibration sensor 250.The operation processing controller 240 may perform operation on theabnormality information ABI1 and ABI2, the temperature information IFO,and the vibration information IF1 by executing software, therebygenerating the control command CMD.

In the present embodiment, the voltage sensor 260 may be coupled to anend point where the power supplier 210 generates the first operatingpower source V1 and senses the level of the first operating power sourceV1 to transmit a sensed result to the operation processing controller240. The operation processing controller 240 may also generate a controlcommand according to whether an overvoltage phenomenon occurs in thelevel of the first operating power source V1.

The above-mentioned operation processing controller 240 may be aprocessor with operational capability.

Referring to FIG. 2 and FIG. 3 hereinafter, FIG. 3 is a start timingsequence diagram of multiple protection actions of the air conditioningdevice according to the embodiments of the disclosure. In time intervalsT1 and T3, protection actions are performed by hardware in the airconditioning device. In a time interval T2, a protection action isstarted by software executed by the operation processing controller.Herein, the protection actions performed by the compressor driver 220and the fan driver 230 according to peak current protection signals PCIand PC2 fed back by the compressor 221 and the fan 231 respectively mayoccur at time T11 in the time interval T1. The protection actionperformed by the surge current protector 212 may then occur at time T12relatively later than time T11 in the time interval T1. In addition, attime T21 in the time interval T2, the operation processing controller240 may make determination based on the current information transmittedby the compressor driver 220 and the fan driver 230 and start aprotection mechanism when an average current of at least one of thedrive signals DRV1 and DRV2 is greater than a pre-determined thresholdvalue. Next, at time T22 in the time interval T2, the operationprocessing controller 240 may make determination and determine whetherto start the protection mechanism according to the temperatureinformation transmitted by the compressor driver 220 and the fan driver230 and the temperature information IFO received by the operationprocessing controller 240. At time T23 in the time interval T2, theoperation processing controller 240 may start the protection mechanismaccording to the vibration information IF1 generated by the vibrationsensor 250. In the present embodiment, the time T21, T22, and T23 mayoccur sequentially.

The fuses disposed in the compressor 221, the fan 231 and, the powersupplier 210 may be fused at time T31 to T33 respectively in the timeinterval T3 when an abnormality phenomenon (overcurrent) occurs, and theprotection mechanism is started.

It can be seen from the above descriptions that in the air conditioningdevice according to the embodiments of the disclosure, the protectionmechanism with multiple different rates is provided. The airconditioning device may be effectively prevented from being damaged dueto at least one of a plurality of different reasons such asover-temperature, overcurrent, and vibration, and the workingappropriateness of the air conditioning device is effectivelymaintained.

Finally, it should be noted that the foregoing embodiments are merelyused for describing the technical solutions of the disclosure, but arenot intended to limit the disclosure.

Although the disclosure is described in detail with reference to theforegoing embodiments, a person of ordinary skill in the art shouldunderstand that, modifications may still be made to the technicalsolutions in the foregoing embodiments, or equivalent replacements maybe made to some or all of the technical features; and such modificationsor replacements will not cause the essence of corresponding technicalsolutions to depart from the scope of the technical solutions in theembodiments of the disclosure.

1. An air conditioning device, configured to control an air conditioner,comprising: a power supplier, comprising an input end receiving an inputpower source and generating a first operating power source and a secondoperating power source according to the input power source; a compressordriver, operating according to the first operating power source togenerate a first drive signal to drive a compressor; a fan driver,operating according to the first operating power source to generate asecond drive signal to drive a fan; a vibration sensor, detectingvibration information of the air conditioner; a temperature sensor,detecting a plurality of pieces of temperature information of the airconditioner; a current sensor, detecting current information of thecompressor and the fan; a voltage sensor, detecting voltage informationin the air conditioning device; and an operation processing controller,coupled to the power supplier, the compressor driver, the fan driver,the vibration sensor, the temperature sensor, the current sensor, andthe voltage sensor, operating according to the second operating powersource, controlling the power supplier according to the vibrationinformation, the temperature information, the current information, andthe voltage information to determine whether to cut off supply of thefirst operating power source or to stop operation of the compressor andthe fan.
 2. The air conditioning device according to claim 1, whereinthe operation processing controller generates a control command via aprotection circuit as hardware or by executing software.
 3. The airconditioning device according to claim 1, wherein the compressor drivertransmits abnormality information to the operation processingcontroller, and the operation processing controller generates a controlcommand according to the abnormality information.
 4. The airconditioning device according to claim 3, wherein the abnormalityinformation comprises temperature information of the compressor driverand current information of the compressor driver.
 5. The airconditioning device according to claim 1, wherein the fan drivertransmits abnormality information to the operation processingcontroller, and the operation processing controller generates a controlcommand according to the abnormality information.
 6. The airconditioning device according to claim 5, wherein the abnormalityinformation comprises temperature information of the fan and currentinformation of the fan.
 7. The air conditioning device according toclaim 1, wherein the plurality of pieces of temperature informationcomprise a suction end temperature of the compressor, a discharge endtemperature of the compressor, an ambient temperature of 1the airconditioner, and a condenser temperature of the air conditioner.